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Warfighter First Combat Readiness, Material Readiness and Personal Readiness
Vice Admiral Thomas S. Rowden Commander Naval Surface Forces/ Pacific Fleet in the best material condition to support the CNO’s tenet of “warfighting first.” Q: You’ve been in command about six months. What have you established as your most important goals and what metrics will you use to measure progress?
Q: Tell me about your organization at Naval Surface Forces headquarters and what your deployed footprint looks like. Do you expect your org chart to look the same in 12 to 18 months? A: We’re what’s known as a “type command,” which means we’re responsible for outfitting the surface combatants, making sure we have the right sailors with the right qualifications and that we are properly maintaining these ships so they’re ready when fleet commanders require them. To that end, my staff provides logistical, training and combat systems support, as well as material inspections to stay ahead of challenges. We’ve seen progress in how we handle the manning, training and equipping of the force over the past few years, and we’ve laid the foundation for what’s coming next. Our organizational chart has grown and evolved, particularly as we bring the Naval Surface Warfighting Development Center online. We will continue to see growth in the first littoral combat ship squadron, DDG 1000 squadron, as well as Destroyer Squadron 7 in Singapore. All of these events move in sync with the purpose of keeping our fleet
A: The most important thing is “warfighting first.” It’s the CNO’s primary tenet and the one I take as my charge as the type commander for the surface force. It guides my vision for the surface force. It is as simple as it is crucial: “Providing combatant commanders with lethal, ready, well-trained and logistically supported surface forces to assure, deter and win.” You get there by prioritizing goals, and I have only one real priority: to ensure that everything we do makes us better warfighters. This goal is built on meeting three enduring pillars which enable warfighting first: combat readiness, material readiness and personal readiness. Each answers a basic question. Combat readiness asks, “Are we training our sailors to fight and win?” Material readiness asks, “Are we providing warships ready for combat?” And personal readiness asks, “Are we developing our sailors?” You’ll notice all of these pillars tie into one word: readiness. Every surface warfare officer (SWO) understands the importance of readiness. As “SWO Boss,” I have the primary responsibility for readiness, and it’s paramount to warfighting—and everything else we are called to do.
10 Feb 2015
Plus: • Who’s who at peo(a) • Navy SBIR Innovations
The Navy’s Proposed FY2016 Budget The Department of the Navy released its proposed $161.0 billion budget for fiscal year 2016 on February 2. This budget is part of the $534.3 billion defense budget President Barack Obama submitted to Congress on the same day. Rear Admiral William Lescher, deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for budget, briefed media at the Department of Defense budget press conference about the Navy and Marine Corps portion of the budget. “Our PB16 budget submission balances warfighting readiness with our nation’s fiscal challenges,” said Lescher. “Our force employment approach aligns capability, capacity and readiness to regional mission demands, ensuring our most modern and technologically advanced forces are located where their combat power is needed most, delivering presence where it matters, when it matters.” This year’s budget submission was guided by the chief of naval operations’ tenets of warfighting first, operate forward and be ready. It makes critical investments in people, ships and innovation so that the Department of the Navy can execute the defense strategy. The Department of the Navy requested $44.4 billion for procurement, focused on providing stability in the shipbuilding account and keeping the Navy on track to reach 304 ships by FY20. In FY16 the Navy will buy nine new ships, including two Arleigh Burke destroyers, two Virginia-class submarines, three littoral combat ships and the first next-generation logistics fleet resupply ship, the T-AO(X). Additionally, this budget includes fully funding the refueling for the aircraft carrier USS George Washington and the procurement of a dock landing ship (LPD 28) that Congress provided partial funds for in the FY15 budget. The budget includes a $50.4 billion request for operations and maintenance, reflecting
Continued On pAGE 40 ➥ Continued On pAGE 31 ➥
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February 10, 2015